Rail-joint.



0. G. MACK. RAIL JOINT.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 8, 1910, 976,272. Patented Nov. 22, 1910.

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1 I 7 76' 6 J a U. G. MACK.

RAIL JOINT.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 8, 1910.

Patented Nov. 22, 1910.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

tiniTEn sTETEs EETEET o EioE.

CLARENCE GUY MACK, OF DURBIN, WEST VIRGINIA.

RAIL-JOINT.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CLARENCE G. MACK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Durbin, in the county of Pocahontas and State of West Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rail- Joints, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in rail joints and has for its object to simplify and increase the etiiciency of rail joints of that character wherein the ends of the abutting rails are securely joined or connected without the use of bolts or similar fastening devices.

A further object is to provide an improved seat or chair for the rail by means of which the fish plates connecting the rails are held from spreading thereby preventing all liability of relative transverse movement of the connected rails.

A still further object is to provide a rail chair which is adapted to be arranged upon the supporting ties beneath the rails and is of such construction as to assist the securing spikes in retaining the rails in their proper positions.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of the novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a rail joint embodying my improvements; Fig. 2 is a side elevation, one of the fish plates being removed and the rail chair shown in section; Fig. 3 is a section taken on the line 3 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4t is a detail perspective view of one of the fish plates; Fig. 5 is a similar view of the end of a rail; and Fig. 6 is a detail perspective view of the rail chair.

Referring more particularly to the drawings 5 indicates the rails and 6 the fish plates which are disposed upon the abutting ends of said rails. These fish plates are arranged upon opposite sides of the rail web and engage therewith and with the base flange 5 of the rails. The upper longitudinal edges of the fish plates are beveled as shown at 7 and are adapted to engage in the undercut grooves 8 formed in the under side of the rail head upon each side of the web. This construction permits of a very close engage- Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 8, 1910.

Patented Nov. 22, 1910.

Serial No. 565,828.

ment of the fish plates with the head of the rail and prevents their outward or transverse movement.

The rails are each formed adjacent to their ends with the openings 9. These openings are elongated longitudinally of the rails and are adapted to receive the studs or pins 10 formed upon the vertical flange of the fish plate. The pins 10 are arranged at one side of the longitudinal center of the fish plate near one end and adjacent to the other end of the plate the same is provided with openings 11. Both of the fish plates are of the same construction and when arranged upon the abutting ends of the rails, the pins 10 are inserted through the openings 9 of the opposing rails. The openings 11 in the fish plates are adapted to register with the openings 9 in the webs of the rails and receive the ends of the pins arranged upon the fish plate on the opposite side of the rails. Thus each of the fish plates serves to hold the other against longitudinal movement with respectto the rails and also prevents any substantial movement of the rail sections with respect to each other. The elongated openings 9 in the rails will, however, permit movement of the rails upon the pins 10 oocasioned by the expansion and contraction of the metal due to variations in temperature. The transverse flanges of the fish plates which are disposed upon the rail base extend to the outer edge of the base and are formed with recesses or notches 12 to receive the spikes which secure the rails to the ties.

In order to prevent the spreading or transverse movement of the track rails with respectto each other after they have been arranged upon the ties and spiked thereto, I provide the base plate or rail chair shown in detail in Fig. 6. This rail chair is generally designated by the numeral 14L and comprises a steel plate the length of which is suflicient to extend across two of the ties. This plate 15 has formed upon its upper surface at the opposite longitudinal edges thereof a rib or cleat. 16. These ribs extend the entire length of the base plate and form guides between which the longitudinal edges of the fish plates 6 are disposed. The fish plates are closely engaged with the inner edges of these ribs which effectually prevent their outward or transverse movement. Rectangular openings 17 are formed through the ribs and the base plate to receive the securing spikes 18 by means of which the rails and the chair are firmly secured in position on the ties. The notches 12 in the longitudinal edges of the fish plates are adapted to register with the spike receiving openings 17, the spikes thus securing both the rail chair and the fish plates in position on the ties. As a further means of security for the rail chair, I form the base plate 15 upon its under surface with a plurality of parallel longitudinal ribs 19. These ribs are of substantially V-shape in cross section and the apices thereof are adapted to engage with and bite into the cross ties. The weight of the rails and the trains moving over the same serve to embed these ribs to greater depth in the ties and thereby obviate all liability of the spreading of the rails. The rail chair is adapted to rest upon and extend across two adjacent ties and the abutting ends of the rail sections are disposed at the approximate center of the chair as clearly shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. It will also be noted that the fish plates 6 are of suflicient thickness to occupy the larger part of the under cut portions 8 of the head of the rail thereby serving as a suppport for the rail head and counteracting the weakening efiect thereon by the formation of the grooves 8.

From the foregoing it is believed that the construction and operation of my improved rail joint will be readily understood. The device is con'iparatively simple and as the parts may all be readily cast, its cost is thereby reduced to a minimum. It will be noted that I dispense with the necessity for using bolts or other analogous fastening devices to connect the abutting ends of the adj acent rails, and by the use of my invention the ordinary spikes are suflicient to properly secure the rails upon the supporting ties. It will be understood that as many of the transverse connecting pins 10 may be employed as desired and that the invention is not limited in its application to the specific structural details shown in the drawings and above described as the device is susceptible of considerable modification without departing from the essential feature or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed is 1. The combination with adjacent rail sections, of fish plates arranged upon the web and base of the abutting ends of the rail sections, one of said fish plates being disposed on each side of the rails, transverse pins carried by each of the fish plates adjacent to one of its ends, the web of the rail sections having spaced longitudinally elongated openings therein to receive said pins, the pins of one of the plates engaging with the other fish plate, the heads of said rails being formed with longitudinal grooves in the under side upon each side of the rail web, said grooves being adapted to receive the upper edges of the fish plates to prevent their transverse movement, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination with adjacent rail sections, of fish plates arranged upon the web and base of the abutting ends of the rail sections, one of said fish plates being disposed upon each side of the rails, transversely extending pins formed on one end of each of the fish plates, the pins carried by one of said plates being disposed oppositely to the pins carried by the other plate, the web of the rail sections having spaced longitudinally elongated openings to receive said pins, the other ends of said fish plates having spaced openings formed therein, the pins carried by one of the fish plates extending through the openings in the rail web and the openings in the end of the other fish plate on the opposite side of the rails, the heads of the rails being undercut and upwardly inclinedfrom their outer longitudinal edges to the web of the rail, the upper edges of said fish plates being beveled to engage the inclined undercut surface of the rail heads substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

ln testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

CLARENCE GUY MACK.

Witnesses THOMAS CUMMINGS, J. D. WILMOTH. 

